BOWLER, WISCONSIN (September 21, 2016) – At the personal request of Chairman Archambault of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribal, the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe, in cooperation with the National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) and Menominee Tribal Enterprises, donated a semi-truck load of firewood to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in support of its fight to halt the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, along with thousands of protestors from tribes across the nation, are currently engulfed in a battle to halt construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline near Sioux tribal lands over concerns it will destroy sacred tribal lands and contaminate drinking water. The firewood donated by the Stockbridge-Munsee and Menominee tribes and the NIGA is a precious resource that is not readily available or accessible on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota.

The firewood was harvested from trees grown in the Menominee Indian Nation Forest, harvested by Menominee Tribal Enterprises (a Menominee tribal business), donated by three Native American organizations and transported by Lee Miller, a member of the StockbridgeMunsee Tribe. Miller, who is the father of Stockbridge-Munsee Tribal Council President Shannon Holsey, drove the semi-truck of firewood to North Dakota and delivered it directly to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.

“This donation is even more special because every aspect of it was organized and facilitated by Native American people,” said Holsey. “The Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe is solidly in support of the Standing Rock Sioux’s efforts to ensure concerns over the pipeline are addressed by state and federal agencies, and we hope that the sovereign rights of the Sioux Nation are respected and upheld.”

About the Stockbridge-Munsee

Tribe The Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Tribe is one of 11 tribes in Wisconsin and has approximately 1,470 tribal members throughout the state, 34 percent of whom live on the tribe’s reservation in Shawano County. The Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe is the largest employer in Shawano County and operates the North Star Mohican Casino Resort, which features 1,200 slot machines and 22 table games. The Tribe is committed to being a good steward of economic, environmental and intellectual resources in the region and strongly believes in the power of education. Each year, the Stockbridge-Munsee Tribe contributes more than $100,000 in funding to the area’s two largest school districts and more than $200,000 to support neighboring communities and other Wisconsin Indian tribes. For more information about the Tribe, visit the website at http://www.mohican.com/ or the tribal Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/smcmohican/